San Francisco: Live music: rock, jazz and folk
San Francisco's music scene reflects the character of the city: laid-back, eclectic and not a little nostalgic. The options for catching live music are wide and the scene is definitely on the up and up, with the city regularly spawning good young bands. Check the San Francisco Bay Guardian and SF Weekly free weeklies, and the San Francisco Chronicle , for listings.Bimbo's 365 Club 1025 Columbus Ave tel 415/474-0365. Classy lounge with tableside drink service (2 minimum) and a varied high quality menu of music styles from jazz to ska.
Biscuits & Blues 401 Mason St tel 415/292-2583. Lively blues supper club with inexpensive Southern cuisine and hot blues acts nightly. Reservations recommended for dinner shows.
Blue Lamp 561 Geary St tel 415/885-1464. Quintessential dive close to downtown that features good acoustic acts (blues & jazz).
Boom Boom Room 1601 Fillmore St tel 415/673-8000, . Once owned by the late blues legend John Lee Hooker, this small, intimate bar delivers straight-ahead jazz or classic blues acts nightly; $3 cover weekdays and $7-$10 weekends.
Bottom of the Hill 1233 17th St tel 415/621-4455. Potrero Hill hangout for rock & country music, live seven nights a week, drawing a late-twenty- to thirtysomething crowd. There's an outdoor all-you-can-eat barbecue on the patio Sun. Cover for shows $4-7.
Bruno's 2389 Mission St tel 415/648-7701. Swank jazz and swing bar/restaurant pulling the kind of attractive young things who are titillated to be in the Mission's seedy section. Cover about $7.
Butterfly 1710 Mission St tel 415/864-5575. A sophisticated jazz and dining spot, with occasional poetry and performance art pieces. The food is very good (served till 1am), but come for the jazz.
Café du Nord 2170 Market St tel 415/861-5016. This popular bar is quite the place to experience live swing, jazz, Latin and blues over good food, or just have a beer and shoot some pool.
Elbo Room 647 Valencia St tel 415/552-7788. The birthplace of acid jazz, a smoothed out instrumental sound that provides upbeat background music for an intense pick-up scene.
The Fillmore 1805 Geary at Fillmore tel 415/346-6000, . The revitalization of a San Francisco institution, the Fillmore features big and little acts alike, for about $20-$25 a pop. A great place to imagine what it was all like in the 1960s.
Great American Music Hall 859 O'Farrell tel 415/885-0750. Historic former bordello and saloon that has been converted into a popular venue for rock, blues, and world music acts.
Lou's Pier 47 300 Jefferson St tel 415/771-0377. An old favorite, and about the only decent place on the Wharf. Lou's blues pulls a good crowd most nights.
Paradise Lounge 308 11th St tel 415/861-6906. Good SoMa venue to see up-and-coming rock bands (usually three per night), or take a break for a game of pool upstairs.
The Saloon 1232 Grant St tel 415/989-7666. North Beach's best spot for R&B. Always packed, it creaks nightly as blues bands and crowds of enthusiastic dancers do their thing.
Tongue & Groove 2513 Van Ness Ave tel 415/928-0404. Local bands ranging from rock and funk to Seventies retro and alternative. Cover $4-8.
Copyright Rough Guides Ltd as trustee for its authors. Published by Rough Guides. All rights reserved. The Rough Guides name is a trademark of Rough Guides Ltd.
Copyright © 2006 United States.biz
